1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a molding member for an automobile windshield plate, having a cross section which varies in the longitudinal direction of the molding member, with reference to the windshield plate.
2. Description of the Related Art
An automobile generally employs various kinds of window molding member which extends along the periphery of a windshield plate or a rear window plate, i.e. along a front or rear edge of a roof panel of the automobile body and a pair of front or rear pillars. Typically, the molding member is composed of an elongate main body for covering a gap between the windshield plate and an adjacent automobile body panel. The main body includes a lip section projecting laterally toward the outer surface of the windshield plate on its periphery, and a leg section projecting toward the gap for retaining the molding member in place when it is in use.
A variety of requirements are imposed on such molding members mainly from design and/or functional viewpoint and resulted in progressively increased demand in the automobile industry for an improved molding member for a windshield plate, with a cross section which varies in the longitudinal direction of the molding member. Thus, a recent trend is to adopt a molding member having an upper portion of a first predetermined cross section, at least one side portion of a second predetermined cross section, and at least one transitional or corner portion for integrally and continuously connecting the upper and side portions with each other.
When such a molding member is arranged along the periphery of a windshield plate, the first cross section of the upper portion contributes to realize a so-called flush surface of the automobile body, and the second cross section of the side portion serves to define a weir along the side edge of the windshield plate. During driving in rainy conditions, the weir serves to prevent rain water on the windshield plate from flowing across the side portion of the molding member toward an adjacent side window, and to thereby effectively preserve driver's and/or navigator's sight through the side window. Therefore, the weir should have an increased cross-sectional area or height, from a functional viewpoint. However, there may be instances wherein known molding members could not readily cope with often ambivalent problems of achieving the intended function while simultaneously satisfying diverse ornamental design requirements.
For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication No. 62-283,017 discloses one embodiment of the molding member wherein the lip section has a tip end which is in contact with the windshield plate along the upper portion and spaced therefrom along the side portion for defining a channel-like weir of the molding member. This type of the molding member may have an increased cross-sectional area of the weir by forming the lip section to project from the automobile body panel with an increased amount. However, an excessive projection of the lip section often results in that the interior of the molding member becomes visible from outside, degrading the appearance of the weir as the case may be. From an esthetic viewpoint, it may be required to reduce the cross-sectional area of the weir and maintain a refined appearance, although such a weir would not ensure the intended function to be properly achieved.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication No. 63-93,618 discloses another embodiment of the molding member which includes a weir-forming element in the form of a longitudinal ridge on the lip section, extending along the side portion of the molding member. Furthermore, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open Publication No. 1-269,612 or applicant's copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 603,551 filed Oct. 26, 1990, now abandoned, discloses still another embodiment wherein the molding member includes a different type of weir-forming element along the side portion of the molding member, which is formed as a bank- or dam-like area of the leg section under the lip section.
In these instances, when it is required for the weir to have an increased height to stably collect and guide water on the windshield plate, the height of adjacent automobile body panel also needs be increased by a corresponding amount. However, the height of the body panel cannot always be increased by a desired amount in terms of the intended function of the weir, due to diverse ornamental design requirements and/or technical difficulties as related to press technology, or the like, for producing the body panel. Here also, a weir with insufficient height would not ensure the intended function to be properly achieved.